Family history research is so fascinating that it deserves to be shared. Here are one writer's musings and insights about making that process palatable and inviting to others.

27 October 2011

My Mother's Voice

Anne Whitney-1980

I have a wonderful mother and I've been thinking about her this month. On 24 October she would have been 85 years old. Sometimes I look at older women and wonder what Mom would look like if she were still alive now. I never saw her when she was old because she died when she was only 54. That seems very young to me now that I'm 10 years past her high water mark. Mom isn't forgotten though. She's still alive in her children's hearts, all 10 of us. Many of her grandchildren weren't alive when she died, but they wonder about her too. This month my sister and I dedicated our third family history podcast to her. You can view it here.

In my sociology studies, I focused on "voice," specifically women's voice--how we are allowed to or take the opportunity to express ourselves. I've been thinking about my mother's voice. Though she was "only" a stay-at-home mom, she had a strong voice. It is because of that strong voice that we still remember her and know her today, 30 years after her death in 1981. I wonder if I will be remembered. I wonder if my voice reflects who I am and what I think, feel and believe. When I write the stories of my life and the lives of my family members, my voice is heard, and it will continue to be heard.

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About Me

I love people. I love family history and I like to write. My undergrad work in family sciences and my master's degree in sociology make my research and family history writing even more interesting to me.Our family committee recently published our third 800 page volume of ancestral histories. My father-in-law forgets many things these days, including my name, but he has never forgotten that I'm a "good girl" since I helped him publish his personal history along with that of my deceased mother-in-law.

Our family committee envisions making our work available for download to interested family members on our family websites: MJ and Hazel Christensen and Whitney-Nay Family History. Some of the chapters are already downloadable--The Nay family in Utah and the West and parts of the Christensen book series. We're now working on monthly podcasts and transforming the books into e-books.

Reading, writing and publishing family history is fun and satisfying to me. I'm convinced of the importance of knowing who we are by knowing where we came from. I started this site to share with others what I have learned and am still learning.

I welcome feedback and invite other family historians to share here as well. In the future I will be helping others to publish their own family histories.